Volume limit coming media players EU wide?

If you’re the type that likes to rock out by blaring your music into your little ear canals, you soon could have a nanny watching over your shoulder, or in this case staring back up at you as mp3 players in EU member countries could soon have a default setting of 80 decibels. This type of suggestion and law isn’t knew and has been around in the EU especially for several years. Although, this is the most aggressive push yet buy government to get any actual implementation moving forward. Even though it doesn’t seem that loud, prolonged exposure to sounds over that number can lead to hearing problems — problems that the EU hopes to avoid. It’s worth noting that users of EU nations will be displayed a pop up when going above the 80 decibel limit. So far it isn’t known whether this pop-up will have to be accepted/ignored by the user or if it will disappear after a few seconds. While I understand that users should be given a nice helpful reminder at what point sound output can be dangerous, I also hope that the EU doesn’t mandate a method that is too invasive or annoying. EU readers: are you looking forward to a “helpful reminder” every time you fire up your mp3 player?

Geek > Times Online

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Nokia’s “Ovi” hits a snag in Brazil.

Ah the classic story of two companies battling it out over naming rights. Today’s match up has Nokia with their “Ovi” mobile store pitted against Brazil and their ringtone/SMS news alert service dubbed “Ouvi”. Off the bat it’s worth noting that both Ovi and Ouvi are pronounced exactly the same. Nokia does have the deeper pockets as the company currently known as “Ouvi” is much smaller and therefore has less cavernous pockets. However, team Ouvi does have some legal weight on their side. The most notable aspect of Ouvi’s case is the fact that the registered the domain name “ovi.com.br” way back in 2004. So, who do you think will win. The deep pocketed Finnish favorite or the legally sound underdog?

IntoMobile > Reuters

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Acer A1 the first Android phone we really want

Android has so far been released on what I would call “lower high end” hardware in that the hardware hasn’t exactly been very drool inducing. That is about to change with the Acer A1. If you didn’t know, the A1 will be the first Android handset to go north of 600 MHz as it packs a 768 MHz beast inside. Though processing power isn’t the only thing to talk about. Everything from the WVGA 3.5″ 800 x 400 screen to the fact it’ll come from the womb rockin’ Android 2.0 Donut mean this will certainly turn many heads. Currently, the only release info we have is that of a price (390 Euros — ~ $571 USD) and an apparent lack of any US release info as well as any more information about that touchscreen such as: Is it capacitive or resistive? Hopefully *fingers crossed* Acer will recognize the vast potential and clamoring Android user base that would love to see this device come stateside. Hit up the links inside for a direct shot to the pre-order page.

**Refresher of complete specs inside.

Upcoming 1st gen USB 3.0 hard drives a little lacking in the speed department

Looking forward to pick up a few of the 1st USB 3.0 compatible hard drives and start living life in the fast lane? If so, you may want to hold off a tad as initial reports on 1st gen USB 3.0 hard drives from Buffalo and Freecom are anything but exciting. In fact it’s pretty underwhelming. The new drives in question: the DriveStation HD-HXU3 from Buffalo and the XS 3.0 (pictured above) made by Freecom are anything but “Super Speedy”. With the Buffalo and Freecom drives reported to hum along at 125MB/s and 130MB/s respectively, many individuals looking to jump on the bleeding edge wagon of USB 3.0 are certainly going to be disappointed. Especially considering USB 3.0 is supposed to offer users speeds ranging from 640 MB/s all the way up to a spec maximum of 5 GB/s. Though it’s worth noting the GB/s plus speeds are under ideal conditions.

Naturally, USB 3.0 backers will at times overstate the spec’s abilities as is evident with these first gen units. However, we also can’t forget these are 1st gen meaning there is plenty of room for improvement and refinement. As USB 3.0 becomes more ubiquitous, expect speeds to rise and prices for the tech to drop. Until then, I suggest holding off until we see some real speed bumps.

The Register

AT&T finally allows iPhone MMS. Big Deal. Have you tried 12seconds?

While the iPhone and AT&T are the laughing stock of the world by just allowing a 7-year old technology to finally function on a “cutting edge device”, many are still wrapped up in all of the MMS, picture sending goodness. However, it is good to know that we as consumers have options. You don’t have to rely on delayed MMS messages and the limits of the technology. A new, promising service called 12seconds looks to revolutionize the way you send picture and audio files. The service essentially allows users to send 12 second video clips of themselves. Sol Lipman, the Co-founder of 12seconds said that 10 seconds was too short and 15 seconds too long, hence the name “12seconds”. Some of the talking points surrounding 12seconds are the fact that it’s free (unlike MMS). 12seconds integrates with Facebook and Twitter. 12mail works on 3G and 1st Gen iPhones by sending a picture with a 12second audio overlay. Again, all of these are features MMS does not support as it is an older, aging technology. Also, the use of services such as 12seconds negate the need for an SMS/MMS package as again, users with data plans can completely ignore those older technologies. Those same users with unlimited data plans already already had options before AT&T activated iPhone MMS functionality such as IM apps and various social networking apps.

While not a new concept, the addition of yet another choice only strengthens the mobile app market place as well as the way we communicate with each other.

Venture Beat

CyanogenMod: “Yep…It’s over”

Android has been looking more and more tempting as of late over my iPhone as AT&T and Apple continue to restrict more and more content (read: users’ rights) and make the iPhone less and less relevant. To anyone with an Android device, getting even more potential out of said unit involved using CyanogenMods and rooting into your phone. Once the dirty task of rooting was done, even more amazing things could be had with Android. But scary and disappointing things are starting to happen with Android as it appears the suits are buckling down. Remember the little bit of information we talked about last week involving the CyanogenMod ring leader and his C & D letter from Google? Well, the dialogue he had with Google didn’t go so well.

Halo Xbox 360 mod looks outta’ this world…

Since I’m on a mod kick this morning, why not move on from the mobile geek cave to something that is a little smaller a heck of a lot more affordable. Gaming console mods are nothing new. We have seen dozens pass through here at GS. Perhaps the most unique and well put together example of console modding to come through in some time the Halo Xbox 360 mod. The name is self explanatory. This 360 mod features a panoramic-like scene on the top of the 360 that is beautifully detailed. It doesn’t just rest on top however as the earthy feel wraps around the entire unit. When a geek with artistic and creative ability really puts their mind into their work, truly awesome creations come forth. If only the creator were taking orders….

• See more pictures of the Halo modded Xbox 360 on deviantART

Geeky-Gadgets > Technabob